**This simple recipe can be used to liven up everything from yogurt and oatmeal to vanilla ice cream. Babies love it as-is, it takes 10 minutes to make and keeps in the fridge for up to 5 days.**

Directions

Pancakes

Place butter and milk in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until butter has melted; remove from heat and let cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt; set aside.

Place egg yolks, vanilla, and lemon zest in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Whisk in a quarter of the milk-butter mixture, wait 30 seconds (this will temper the eggs and prevent them from curdling), then whisk in the remaining milk-butter mixture until smooth.

Add the reserved flour mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined (do not over mix); set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk egg whites to soft peaks. (They should bend like soft-serve ice cream; make sure the bowl and whisk are perfectly clean with no traces of grease, or the whites will not whip properly.) Halfway through whisking the eggs, sprinkle in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Using the rubber spatula, fold the whites into the batter until just combined.

Gently fold the ricotta into the batter, being careful not to break down the texture of the cheese (the batter will be lumpy and streaked with ricotta); set aside.

Heat a large nonstick frying pan, griddle, or seasoned cast iron skillet over medium heat until hot, about 4 minutes. Test to see if the pan is hot enough by sprinkling a couple of drops of cold water in it. If the water bounces and sputters, the pan is ready to use.

Lightly coat the pan’s surface with butter, then use a 1/4-cup measure to scoop the batter into the pan. Cook until bubbles form on top of the pancakes, about 4 to 5 minutes. 9. Flip and cook the other side until the bottoms are golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes more.

Repeat with the remaining batter. Serve immediately with compote.

Compote

Add berries and water to a small pot.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 8 minutes.

Puree with handheld mixer, blender, or food processor. If you prefer chunkier compote, simply use a fork to further break down the fruit.

Add cinnamon and vanilla, stir, and simmer for 5 more minutes, stirring often.

Add more almond milk as needed to achieve desired consistency.

For babies 8 months old or older, stir raisins in at the end.

Photo:

Amy Westervelt

5

Almond Milk

Ingredients

1 cup raw almonds
5 cups filtered water
1 pinch of salt

Directions

Cover the almonds with 2 cups of water in a clean container with a lid (glass jars work particularly well) for at least 6 hours or leave them to soak overnight.

Drain the almonds and discard the water.

Blend the almonds with the remaining 3 cups of water until you get a smooth texture.

Strain the mix through cheesecloth or a very fine strainer, and voila! You've made almond milk. The milk can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Photo:

Amy Westervelt

6

Sweet Potato Puffs

Ingredients

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled**
3 tbsp. flour
2 eggs
Pinch salt

*Try different kinds. You can also substitute regular potatoes, carrots, or butternut squash, depending on your preferences and what you've got on hand.*

Directions

Parboil sweet potatoes. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and cook sweet potatoes for about 10 minutes.**

Set potatoes on a plate to cool.

When potatoes are cool enough to handle, wrap a paper towel around them to squeeze out the water. Grate the potatoes into a large bowl. Combine potatoes with flour and eggs.

Preheat oven to 375.

Form small balls of the mixture and set onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, turning them over halfway through to brown on both sides.

Transfer to a bowl, sprinkle with salt, and serve.

**Sweet potato puffs also work well flash-fried. If you'd like to go this route, boil the potatoes entirely first, then follow the recipe and, instead of baking, fry with 3 tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet.

In the same pan, add the pine nuts and toast until browned (about 2 minutes).

Add the pine nuts, the rest of the olive oil, Parmesan, salt and pepper to the food processor or blender and blend, adding olive oil, stock and/or water as needed to achieve the desired consistency.

Mix with any type of cooked pasta, top with a pinch of grated Parmesan, and serve.

**You can play around with this blend. I even use a head of broccoli instead of one of the bunches of greens from time to time. Also remember that babies younger than 10 months might have a hard time digesting spinach. (In other words, it could give them gas and we all know what a nightmare baby gas can be.)**

In a bowl or mixer, combine chard/spinach mix with olive oil, flour, salt, eggs and egg yolks. Mix with a dough paddle in a mixer, or with a wooden spoon and then your hands in a bowl. If the dough seems sticky, add flour. It should be damp, but not sticky, to the touch.

Cover with a cloth and let rest for 1/2 hour in a cool, dark place.

Separate the dough into 8 even balls and knead them into rectangles. Run each rectangle through a pasta machine or the pasta attachment on a mixer, starting at 1 and working your way up to 6. You should end up with very long, thin pieces about 5 inches wide and 40 inches long. Spread each piece onto wax paper and sprinkle with flour before moving on to the next piece.

When all your dough balls have been rolled out, use a pizza cutter or knife to cut each long rectangle into three even pieces, and then cut noodles of the desired width. You can also use a pasta machine or attachment to evenly cut the noodles, but ragged pasta edges are great for catching sauce.

Toss the noodles in a bowl with a little flour and either cook right away: boil water, add a pinch of salt, add pasta, cook for just four minutes, drain. Or cover with a towel and store in a dark, cool, dry spot for up to a day.

To serve, mix pasta with your favorite sauce, or simply toss with olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, and Parmesan.

First, make the vinaigrette: In a medium bowl, add the balsamic, the lemon juice and zest, the garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Let the salt dissolve completely before adding more. Add 1/2 the parsley and the thyme, add the olive oil and mix it until the consistency is smooth.

Marinate the veggies with half of the vinaigrette for at least 1 hour.

Add the faro and water to a pot, bring to a boil and cook for about 20 min. (Tip: If you let the faro soak overnight, it will cook a little bit faster.)

While the faro is cooking, clean the fish, looking for spines or scales. Rinse it well with cold water and then dry it with paper towels. Season it with salt and pepper and let it sit for 10 minutes.

In a hot pan, sauté the veggies, incorporating them one by one in the following order: the peppers, the tomatoes, the olives, and then the zucchini. Add the cooked faro and mix it all together. You can add more vinaigrette if needed. Once all the veggies are cooked al dente, turn the stove off and add the rest of the parsley. Let the pot sit on the stovetop while you cook the salmon.

In another pan, sear the salmon in high heat, then reduce to medium-low heat and cover with a lid for 3 minutes if you like it medium or a little more if you like it well done.

Plate the salmon with faro salad for adults and older kids. For babies, set aside a portion of salmon on its own.

Photo:

Amy Westervelt

11

Easy Beef Stock

Ingredients

Beef stew bones
1 ox tail
1 large glass jar
5 cups water

Directions

Place the bones in the jar.

Place the water in a large pot.

Place the jar in the pot.

Bring the water to a boil, and cover the pot. Let simmer for about an hour, or until the jar is filled with light brown liquid. If the water has evaporated and there's still very little liquid in the jar, add more water to the pot and continue simmering.

Pour the stock out of the jar into a separate container and discard the bones. Babies can eat the stock like a soup, or it can be used to thin purees. It also makes a great addition to sauces for grilled meats, or a foundation for a hearty beef-vegetable soup.